blamebrampton

I've been debating with myself about this fic all week. The fact of the matter is that it's a problem child. Well into the hd_holidays  fest I was beta-ing a terrific fic by someone who was running a wee bit late and received a check-in email from one of the mods, who tiredly told a tale of woe about fic problems.

I may have been slightly out of my mind with exhaustion, or possibly drunk on a nip of limoncello, but I found myself saying: 'If you need something light and comedic with a possible touch of politics written to order, feel free to call on me. It won't be genius, but it will be competent!'

They called, I wrote! Of course, there was a 10-day turn-around period and it was Christmas and so my beloved beta jadzialove  was only available for a few days, and my darling treacle_tartlet  who had insisted I call on her if needed was trapped in the wilds of Victoria with lunatics. I asked on my flist for a stunt beta and the unutterably fabulous nursedarry  narrowly beat the stylish and delightful drgaellon  to the offer. Which is probably for the best as I developed a serious surprise psychic link with Darry -- my innocent little mind would have been hopelessly distracted for months if it had been the other way around, Randy!

( The navel-gazing (feel free to skip) )


Title: Of Hoof Picks, Centaurs, and Flight
Pairing(s): Harry/Draco, previous brief Harry/Justin Finch-Fletchley, attempted Draco/Oliver Wood, actual Oliver Wood/adoring masses (offscreen), other canon pairings
Summary: Harry has promised that he will not do anything to upset the new head of Magical Creatures. Even if it is Draco Malfoy. When three centaur foals appear in Cumbria, far from the Forbidden Forest and all too close to Muggles, Harry’s promise is thoroughly tested. To say nothing of his equestrian skills.
Rating: Nothing to scare the horses
Disclaimer: All Harry Potter characters herein are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No copyright infringement is intended.
Warning(s): None
Epilogue compliant? No for Harry and Draco, yes for most other characters.
Word Count: A bit over 21,000
Author's Notes: Written for rosivan  at the 2010 hd_holidays . This fic would have been utterly doomed without the encouragement and generous beta skills of nursedarry , and her powers of psychic link, and the eagle eye of jadzialove . Many thanks, too, to treacle_tartlet , who assured me that Twilight jokes were wholly appropriate, because wizarding kids have enough youthful problems with formal robes and should be allowed the odd smuggled Muggle novel.

( The fic! )

Part two